By Nigel Maxwell

Ag. industry workforce “stable”: Stats Canada

Aug 14, 2018 | 5:00 PM

There were fewer people working in Canada’s agriculture industry last month, according to the latest figures from Statistics Canada.
 
July’s employment numbers revealed there were 273,000 people working in the agriculture industry, a drop from 276,200 in June. Year-over-year there was a decrease of 5.7 per cent. Statistician Vincent Farrow said the industrty is stable and the difference is considered almost insignificant.
 
“It is a sample survey so you need a change at a certain level (5,400) for us to say ‘Yes for sure there was an increase or a decline,’” he said.
 
Saskatchewan was among the provinces that saw a decrease last month, with 1,100 fewer people working in the agriculture industry June to July. Farrow cautioned the number may simply reflect another trend.
 
“It’s not uncommon to see farm owners having a second job so they might still be working but at their second job,” he said. “They might make more money being a truck driver.”
 
In terms of what specific sectors were impacted, Farrow said there were fewer people working in crop production, but there was an increase in the number of people working in animal production.

 
nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca
 
On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell